While boating at Forest Lake may be out of the question until the weather warms up, the Kirksville City Council debated Monday whether to continue paying for a Kirksville Police officer to patrol the lake during the busier spring and summer months, an enforcement effort that had been cut during the budget process.

The cost for renting and maintaining the boat out at Forest Lake in Thousand Hills Park was estimated at about $5,100. That cost was cut from KPD’s budget but Council discussed whether the enforcement and police presence at the lake was worth the additional expense.

“The officer who did the patrols in the past believes there is a value for it,” City Manager Mari Macomber told the Council during its study session Monday. “At the time, we were looking to make the budget work.”

Previously, a KPD officer had been on lake patrol for about 40 hours a week mostly during the summer and focusing on the weekend for about 10 hours a day.

Kirksville Police Chief Jim Hughes called the practice “longstanding” and noted that without the boat, police response on the city-owned lake could be impaired.

Hughes did note that in the past year, the officer had made 11 official actions such as issuing citations for boating violations but that generally boating while intoxicated incidents were not routine.

“But the officer will issue a lot of verbal warnings, whether it’s not putting a flag up while the skier is in the water or not doing what they’re supposed to do,” Hughes said.

The Council expressed a desire to continue the practice with Macomber laying out potential funding options including raising boat permit fees at the lake or the possibility of healthier revenues boosting the budget. Council will likely be presented with options and make a final decision at a later meeting.